It is often necessary to quickly obtain a sample of blood and perform an analysis of the blood sample. One example of a need for obtaining a sample of blood is in connection with a blood glucose monitoring system, which a user must frequently use to monitor their blood glucose level.
One method of monitoring a person's blood glucose level is with a portable, hand-held blood glucose testing device. The portable nature of these devices enables users to conveniently test their blood glucose levels at a variety of locations. Some of these devices employ colorimetric testing. In a colorimetric assay, a reagent is designed to produce a colorimetric reaction indicative of a user's blood glucose concentration level. An optical instrument incorporated into the testing device then reads the colorimetric reaction.
A major drawback associated with optical instruments for reading colorimetric reactions is contamination of the optical instrument with biological fluids. Contamination occurs when a biological fluid from a previous sample contacts the optics and is not removed prior to testing the next sample. The presence of a biological fluid from a previous sample can reduce the accuracy of the test result of the current sample by mixing with the current sample or covering a portion of the optics, thus preventing the accurate reading of the current sample. Thus, what is needed is a device that can isolate the optics from the biological fluid sample.
One method of manufacturing current test sensors using traditional manufacturing techniques requires the reagent-coated membrane strip and the mesh layer strip to be cut to the desired size prior to being bonded to a sensor. The small size of the pre-cut reagent-coated membrane and mesh layer makes manufacturing a time consuming, labor intensive, and difficult task. Thus, it would be desirable to have a method of manufacturing a test sensor that is easier to perform.